Danielle Demetriou

Danielle Demetriou is a correspondent based in Tokyo since 2007. She writes news and feature reports about all things Japan-related for the Daily and Sunday Telegraph. Originally from London, she now lives on a small green lane a short stroll south of the neon blare of Shibuya.

For thousands of years, it has been home to epic-scale earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Yet at the same time, it is a nation that has long lamented its lack of natural resources.

So why is Japan not tapping into its vast potential for geothermal energy capabilities? And will the nation finally start to wake up to the possibility of tapping into such resources in the wake of the March 11 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis?

Geothermal power currently accounts for less than 1 per cent of Japan's energy output – despite the fact that it is located above the world’s third largest reserve of geothermal resources (after the United States and Indonesia). The Japanese government has long imported its oil, goal and gas from overseas while investment in nuclear energy has been high since the 1970s oil… Read More

A mobile phone that doubles as a radiation detector? If there is one country that can pull off (and sell) such a device, it’s Japan. A leading Japanese telecommunications company will unveil a smartphone next week that also acts as a radiation dosimeter to help users detect potential contamination.

In Japan, it’s a timely invention – and a reflection of just how seriously businesses are taking the anti-nuclear mood sweeping the country as the worst atomic crisis since Chernobyl rumbles on. More than six months may have passed since the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, but the nation’s concerns surrounding potential radiation contamination are now reaching fever pitch.

The chants of anti-nuclear protesters are becoming an increasingly frequent soundtrack in cities across the country at weekends, with tens of thousands gathering at one of the… Read More

Sunshine, ice cream, beaches – and 22 million tones of rubble. This may not sound like a winning formula for a much-needed relaxing holiday. But for many Japanese, life simply hasn’t been the same since March 11’s tri-fold earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster – and it’s clear that taking a holiday is no exception.

This summer, hordes of Japanese holidaymakers jumped into cars, bullet trains or planes and headed not to southern beaches – but to the tsunami wreckage of the damaged Tohoku region in the northeast. Testimony to this? Visitor numbers in Tohoku reportedly peaked during August’s O Bon – a perhaps aptly-timed national holiday for remembering the spirits of deceased ancestors.

And it’s a phenomenon that’s unlikely to be confined just to the summer. Today’… Read More